- Having the right contacts is more important than politicians realize
Professor Jonas Linde says to local newspaper Sunnhordaland that politicians often underestimate the importance of having the right contacts. A recent survey done by the newspaper shows that less than half of the elected politicians in the municipality of Stord believes knowing the right people matters for influencing political outcomes there.
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Politicians: - Contacts not critical
Sunnhordaland reports May 15th that only 42,9 percent of elected politicians in the municipality of Stord would say that knowing the right people matters for influencing political outcomes in the municipality, according to a recent survey conducted among elected politicians at Stord.
In response to the figures, Professor Jonas Linde of the Department of Comparative Politics says that while most people overestimate the significance of having the right contacts, politicians tend to underestimate it.
- May be in their interest to seem impartial
Linde, who uses public opinion data on system support in his research, notes that it can be in the interest of politicians to come across as impartial, and that this may have affected how those interviewed have answered.
He adds that it is methodologically very hard to measure how much knowing the right people actually matters for influence.
See the story here.
See also: research group Citizens, Opinion, Representation
